Exeter City did everything possible to keep striker Jayden Stockley at the club, but were powerless to prevent their top goalscorer from leaving St James Park.

The club announced on New Year’s Day that ‘several’ clubs had triggered a release clause in his contract, believed to be £750,000, leaving the Grecians in no position to stop their 16-goal top scorer from talking to them.

However, while Stockley was happy in Devon, stating after his hat-trick he had never been happier on the football pitch, the lure of a fresh challenge elsewhere was too much for the 25-year-old former AFC Bournemouth and Aberdeen striker.

“When he signed from Aberdeen, there was a clause in his contract which was a set fee which kicked in this January window,” Taylor told Devon Live. “As soon as buying clubs met that clause then Jayden has every right to speak to them and we have to give him permission to speak to those clubs.

“You can probably imagine that we knew it was coming. We tried everything we could in terms of changing his current contract but, full credit to Jayden, he has done everything he can since he signed and - certainly since he knew what was coming in January - he has been absolutely outstanding in leading this team.

“He really drove that team in taking us to Wembley last season and he has got 16 goals this season as well.”

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The Grecians have acted swiftly in finding a replacement with an undisclosed fee agreed with Motherwell for Ryan Bowman, who completed his move to the club on Wednesday.

Regardless of any incomings, though, Stockley is bound to be missed with his 16 goals this season making him the top goal scorer in League Two.

“Look, are going to miss him, but Exeter City works in a certain way and he wouldn’t have signed for us from Aberdeen if there wasn’t that clause in his contract between him and his agent,” Taylor added.

“That’s credit to the people that were at the club at the time; obviously I wasn’t part of the club in terms of contracts back then.

“We knew what was coming, we have braced ourselves, but it is still not straight forward in terms of finding replacements and we won’t be able to find a direct replacement for Jayden Stockley.

“Sixteen goals before New Year shows you what a good player he is at this level, but it is on to the next.”

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It is not an uncommon story for the Grecians to lose a key player and underlines once again their outstanding work in developing players and selling them on at a profit.

Whether they are Academy graduates like Matt Grimes, Ollie Watkins or Ethan Ampadu, or players bought and sold on for bigger fees, like Stockley, it is testament to the coaching staff and further enhances their reputation as a club where players can develop and really flourish.

“I hope it gets noted that we have improved Jayden Stockley,” Taylor added. “He was certainly not the finished article when he arrived and he is probably not the finished article leaving us, but he has certainly developed and improved and that is testament to the way we do our work.

“I want players to come to this club because it is not all about success on the pitch, it is about developing individuals and characters and their abilities. Hopefully they improve with us and then take us to another level, but if they don’t, they go to another level themselves.”